Professional Documents
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Limitations On Power To Construe
Limitations On Power To Construe
POLITICAL QUESTION
Unless expressly provided by statutes.
Examples:
- Art. 10, Civil Code: 1. A ‘political question’ is one the resolution of which has been vested
In case of doubt in the interpretation or application of laws, it is presumed that the lawmaking by the Constitution exclusively in either the people, in the exercise of
body intended right and justice to prevail.
their sovereign capacity, or in which full discretionary authority has been
- Section 4, Labor Code: delegated to a co-equal branch of the Government.
All doubts in the implementation and interpretation of the provisions of this Code, including its
implementing rules and regulations, shall be resolved in favor of labor.
2. Thus, while courts can determine questions of legality with respect to
OTHER LIMITATIONS governmental action, they cannot review government policy and the
- Judicial legislation - when a court, under the guise of interpretation, modifies, amends, remodels or rewrites wisdom thereof, for these questions have been vested by the Constitution
a statute in the Executive and Legislative Departments.
Judicial legislation refers to a court's actions that involve filling in the gaps of laws or overstepping
boundaries of the judicial branch of government PURELY POL. QUESTION
CASUS OMISSUS o Purely political question left to the sound discretion of the legislature.
GRAVE ABUSE OF DISCRETION
which means that case omitted from the language of a statute but within the general scope of
the statute and which appears to have been omitted due to inadvertence or by overlook cannot be LEGISLATIVE WISDOM
supplied by the court
The court to carry out the intent of the legislature, may correct clerical errors, mistakes or misprint as long as
the meaning is intended is apparent on the face of the whole enactment, and no specific provison is abrogated
To correct the error or mistake is to prevent the nullification of the statute and give it meaning and purpose
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bench, the bar, and the public; and (d) the case is capable of repetition yet evading
DOCTRINE OF STARE DECISIS review; and that where there is a voluntary cessation of the activity complained of by
when this Court has once laid down a principle of law as applicable to a the defendant or doer, it does not divest the court the power to hear and try the case
certain state of facts, it will adhere to that principle, and apply it to all future especially when the plaintiff is seeking for damages or injunctive relief.
cases, where facts are substantially the same; regardless of whether the parties
and property are the same.[71] The doctrine of stare decisis is based upon the
legal principle or rule involved and not upon the judgment, which results
therefrom. In this particular sense, stare decisis differs from res judicata, which
is based upon the judgment.[72]
MOOT AND ACADEMIC
A moot and academic case is one that ceases to present a
justiciable controversy by virtue of supervening events, so that a
declaration thereon would be of no practical value. As a rule,
courts decline jurisdiction over such case, or dismiss it on ground
of mootness.
the moot and academic principle is a general rule only, the exceptions,
provided in David v. Macapagal-Arroyo, that it will decide cases, otherwise moot and
academic, if it finds that (a) there is a grave violation of the Constitution; (b) the
situation is of exceptional character and paramount public interest is involved; (c) the
constitutional issue raised requires formulation of controlling principles to guide the
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